184 journal and proceedings 



Order PICI. Woodpeckers, Wrynecks, etc. 



Family PICID^, Woodpeckers, 



Genus DRYOBATES Boie. 



161. DRYOBATES VILLOSUS (Linn.). 398. 



Hairy Woodpecker. 



Back black, with a long white stripe ; quills and wing coverts with a 

 profusion of white spots ; four middle tail feathers black, next pair black and 

 white, next two pairs white ; under-parts white ; crown and sides of head 

 black, with a white stripe over and behind the eye, another from the nasal 

 feathers running below the eye to spread on the side of the neck, and a 

 scarlet nuchal band in the male, wanting in the female; young with the crown 

 mostly red or bronzy, or even yellowish. Length, g-io; wing, nearly 5 ; 

 tail, 3^. 



Hab. Middle portion of the Eastern United States, from the Atlantic 

 coast to the Great Plains. 



Nest, in a hole in a tree. 



Eggs, 5 to 6 ; pure white, 



A resident, though not very abundant species, noticed more 

 frequently in winter than in summer. It is generally 

 distributed through Southern Ontario, and was also noted by 

 Prof. Macoun in the Northwest. Individuals vary much in 

 size, those found in the north being the largest. 



The Hairy Woodpecker is one of the most retiring of the 

 family, spending much of its time in the solitudes of the woods, 

 and when these are thinned out or cleared away, moving to 

 regions still more remote. It is a strong, hardy, active bird, 

 and the noise it makes while hammering on a tree, when heard 

 in the stillness of the woods, might well be supposed to be 

 produced by a bird of much greater size. 



162. DRYOBATES PUBESCENS (Linn.). 394. 

 Downy Woodpecker. 



Coloration exactly as in P. villosus except the outer tail feathers are 

 barred with black and white. Length, 6-7 ; wing, under 4 ; tail, under 3. 



